User blog:Francesca14601/Descendants 2 review! (SPOILERS)
What's up, crew? It is Fran again and back with a review of Descendants 2! Are you ready? WARNING: Spoilers ahead! This is not a spoiler-free review. Please watch the movie before reading this review. Thank you! Note: I've previously posted a similar review on my Wattpad account. This is that same review but in other words. First thought? Well, I wouldn't say the movie was amazing or deserves an Oscar. It was definitely better than the first one and with a more complex plot. Overall, this movie is enjoyable. Don't get too personal on the details and just enjoy it as it is. I'm totally contradicting myself right now because I am slowly dying since Disney cut the Hil scene. Best of it? For outstanding character, I would go for Evie. She has grown so much ever since the beginning of the first film Descendants. She went from an insecure girl who looked for a (not so) fairy tale prince to a successful business woman. I think that out of all characters, Evie has had the best character development. Sofia Carson's acting skill is on point. She really made me feel Evie like a real person and not just a fictional character. As for the best scene throughout the whole movie, I think it would definitely be the scene where two kids are trying to rob Evie. That scene touched my heart completely. It is so amazing but in the same time, so sad. Just look at the little kid's face. She looked so vulnerable. And then, how Evie looked at the kid and decided that they needed her wallet more than she does. Her face expression throughout that scene was perfect. I won't say that she deserves an Oscar, but seriously, she definitely slayed that scene! The portrayal of the Isle of the Lost in the sequel is a lot darker. In the first movie, we just had a brief experience of it as our main characters spent their journey getting to know Auradon, and therefore, everything we knew what Auradon people's reaction to the VKs. I'm glad that the writers decided to place Auradon aside and focus on the Isle of the Lost. Of course, if I'm talking about the Isle of the Lost, there's no way I could exclude Uma. Uma was an interesting character. I don't see her as the villain, but just as how Ben has accurately describe her, and I quote "an angry girl with a bad plan". Yes, Uma is exactly like Mal, and it is Mal if Ben never choose her to go to Auradon. Just picture it. Mal would surely be jealous if some other kids were chosen to have a perfect fairy tale life while she'd be stuck there and forgotten. The chat between Ben and Uma was also perfect. Ben finally broke out of his shell and understood the world of the VKs, something that he thought that he had done when he made his first proclamation. Ben realized that by focusing on granting happiness to the 4 VKs he had chosen, he had completely forgotten about the rest. He, like the rest of Auradon, had forgotten that the Isle of the Lost was also part of his Kingdom, and there people is his people. I'm glad that at the end, Evie gave him a list of the kids that really deserve a second chance. The sub-plot of Lonnie fighting her way to enter the R.O.A.R. team was good, too. It was short, but I appreciate the writers for not wasting this character. Lonnie truly disappointed me in Descendants, I hoped that she would be something more than just one of those girls that's in need of a magical hair extension. In D2, they have fixed that little hole and filled it with the image if this tough girl who would fight until the end to get what she wants. My personal favorite character is... yes, you know who... Harry Hook! He's such a maniac and I love it! Thomas Doherty did an incredible job portraying the crazy pirate. His chemistry with Mal is also my favorite thing about D2. Although it was brief, you can clearly feel the connection between the two characters. I think that Dove Cameron and Thomas weren't even acting that scene. They just did it. The flaws The biggest flaw of Descendants 2 is how the entire movie literally blurred the other characters. Jay and Carlos, although they are part of the main team, still didn't get the attention that they deserved. These two may have played a big role in their own sub-plots, but let's be honest, they have nothing to do with the central plot. Carlos has pointed that out on-screen and I thank him so much for doing that. Descendants is a franchise where the public is generally female and I see the clear reason. Ben is so far the only important male character throughout the two films. I'm saying films because Ben isn't even close to important in the animated series Descendants: Wicked World. The Isle of the Lost series by Melissa de la Cruz is the only case where both genders of Descendants are given the same importance. Now let's get back to the issue with the other characters. Among the supporting characters, Dizzy Tremaine is the only one who was given a definite role had fulfilled it at the end. As for the overall plot, Chad was given the role of the comedic relief but I'll be honest and say that he had miserably failed it. In the sub-plot of Lonnie, he returned with the same old jerk jock attitude, and not to mention, incredibly sexist. At least that's okay, I won't blame him. His presence was necessary to carry on with the sub-plot, but seriously, does he have to be annoyingly cringy? I've always felt bad for Doug. In neither of the films he was given a bigger role than Evie's love interest. The difference? Probably the hair. The next character that we almost forgot is Jane. In the first film, Jane turned out to be the plot twist in form of a character. She had the role of the shy and insecure girl who just wanted to look as pretty as the other princesses since she attends a school full of them. Jane pretty much fulfilled her role after Mal told her that the girl is beautiful inside and out. In Descendants 2, Jane no longer has a definite role than being busy planning the Royal Cotillion and friend-zoning poor Carlos. She ultimately confessed her feelings for him, the little couple is happy and the plot is done. Oh! And in case you don't know, Jane certainly played a bigger role in Rise of the Isle of the Lost: A Descendants Novel. Check it out! Another reason why Descendants is not that great for me is because of the climax. I did not expect Uma to turn into a giant octopus and neither seeing Mal becoming a dragon. The CGI is cheesy and I won't blame the producers, but my goodness! Did they really have to? Can't they just place normal Uma and normal Mal fighting each other with normal magic without morphing into the thing that they kinda hated most, which is their own mothers? But on second thought... You know what? The scene was awesome! It was Ben who screwed things up when he did that pathetic roar and stopped the fight. What is wrong with you? I was waiting for this fight to happen!! And yes, you know that I am going to talk about this: I AM DISAPPOINTED THAT DISNEY REMOVED THE KISS BETWEEN HARRY AND GIL!!!! I will spare you and stop ranting about how I wish Hil to happen. For more info, you can leave a message in my wall. The amount of scenes with Harry and Gil (both as individual characters and as a pair) was simply not enough. They were both interesting characters, specially Harry. At least Harry was given more screen time than Gil. The thing is, I love both characters equally and I am upset that they didn't give them enough role. That's it for now, crew. I hope you've enjoyed my review. Share your thought below and maybe if you want, write your own review! Until next time! Category:Blog posts